Southampton sits at the bottom of the English Premier League table. The Saints have been seasoned campaigners in the league but are facing relegation this season. The team has been inconsistent throughout the season. One of the reasons behind their struggles is the home form. Southampton have failed to show dominance at home. The Saints have won five matches this season; only one came at St. Mary’s Stadium.
Southampton have won five, drawn three, and lost 15 matches in the league this season. They have collected six points in 11 league matches at home. These include one win, three draws, and five losses. Currently, the team is on a five-match losing streak at home. They restricted Arsenal to a 1-1 draw before this dreadful run but were unable to take the momentum into the matches that followed. The above pizza chart shows the percentile rank of Southampton in comparison to other teams in the English Premier League. Southampton have struggled in every department. Now as the Saints fight relegation, we look into some of the stats that show the areas of struggle.
Failures to find the back of the net
One of the reasons behind Southampton’s poor form is their inability to score goals. They have scored 19 goals with an average xG rate of 1.16. At home, a total of ten goals have been scored at a relatively high xG rate of 1.48. Despite being a more attacking team at home than in away matches, Southampton have performed below par. The Saints create 33 positional attacks per match at home and attempt 12.09 shots (a 35.5% accuracy rate). In away matches, Southampton only creates 23.33 positional attacks and attempts 9.42 shots (a 32.7% accuracy rate). There is a significant difference in numbers, and the Saints have led to their own downfall.
These struggles have been observed in the last five home matches. Southampton have only scored three goals. They average more than 11 shots in these matches, but the accuracy rate has gone down to 24.56%. The above xG map shows that the Saints have also failed to penetrate the six-yard box. This has resulted in this poor run for them, and they will definitely look to improve this record to avoid relegation.
Another reason why this home form is poor is because of Southampton’s ability to play the ball. The team averages an almost equal share of possession at home and away. However, at home, they attempt 350.55 passes (79.3% accuracy), and in away matches, the average is high at 376.75 passes (81.2% accuracy). The above viz shows that most of the ball’s progression has been made from the wider sides. This shows that the team likes to penetrate the ball into the box from wide areas. They tried the same in the last five matches, but struggled from the left side. The players won a few dribbles from the left side. They tried to deliver crosses but failed to find a teammate in dangerous scoring positions. Southampton are dominant in creating attacks at home but fails to create frequent movements with the ball.
Defensive failures
A team ranked at the bottom of the table usually struggles in the attack as well as in the defence. Southampton haven’t had the worst defence in the league, but their leaky defence hasn’t given any positive signs. The Saints defend against more attacking actions in away games than at home. However, they have a similar average for goals conceded at home and away. The Saints play a deep defensive line in their away matches. This means that they are involved in more defensive actions.
Southampton averages 76.5 defensive duels and 42 aerial duels per match in away games. They make 51.25 interceptions and give away 12.5 fouls. At home, they contest 70.36 defensive duels and 49.36 aerial duels. The team intercepts the ball 44.27 times and gives away 10.73 fouls. They tend to be more defensive and aren’t afraid of conceding any free-kick.
Betting Analysis
The recent form of the team will affect the 1×2 odds rate of Southampton. Their struggles at home mean that their rate will eventually go up. As for the over/under lines, the under lines for Southampton will thrive due to their poor form in front of the goal.
Southampton are fighting the relegation battle and registered a 1-0 win over Southampton away from home. This was their fourth away victory in 12 matches. At home, the team has just won a single game. They struggle in the attack and in the defence. The manager will expect his team to be more clinical as they create more chances at home and hope that they get through these tough times.
Visuals via TFA data viz engine
